A Quiet Night In
by Mia-Zeklos
Summary: There's no dull moment to the life in Torchwood. Not even after the workday is over.


**Author's Notes: Based on a prompt I was given on tumblr. Unadulterated fluff, really, which is a first for me, even if I think I still managed to sneak a bit of angst in.**

**References: Doktor Glass is an actual book. I'm reading it right now and that's why I decided to throw it in.**

**I hope you enjoy it and, as usual, don't be afraid to let me know what you think.**

As much as Ianto complained about his job, he secretly loved Torchwood for all the thrill it brought to him. But the times when it all settled down were undoubtedly lovely as well.

The tiring day they'd had and the warmth of his flat compared to the snow outside were making him sleepy, but his book was keeping him awake. He'd been telling himself 'one more chapter' for three chapters now, but it was easy to lose track of time. The heating was on with full force and yet Jack was leaning his head on Ianto's shoulder, just as relaxed even if he was amusing himself with the telly instead of the younger man's current indifference to the world outside his book.

"Doktor Glass," the Captain said, peeking at the cover. "What's it about?"

"Victorian England, murders and steam-powered everything."

"Your genre taste in a nutshell," Jack said and Ianto swatted at him half-heartedly. "You do know that it's two in the morning, right?"

"Mmm."

"And that we should get up at six thirty?"

"Uh-huh."

Jack sighed and settled back into Ianto's side, occasionally chuckling at something in the show he was watching before he slowly looked up again, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Wait. Didn't that book fall through the Rift a few days ago?" Ianto just squirmed guiltily under the blanket. "Ianto?"

"It comes from 2012, apparently," he explained reluctantly at last. "Or sometime after that; can't be sure. It's brand new, though."

Jack gave him a stern look. "How often is this happening?"

"As often as the book that falls through the Rift catches my interest, really." Ianto tried to bite back a laugh at the deepened frown on his Captain's face. It was all too amusing to see Jack trying to be the firm and demanding leader when it was a secret known by everyone that Torchwood was equally ran by all of its members.

"Ianto, there's a reason I've forbidden everyone to take out stuff like that. It might be dangerous."

"It's a _book_, Jack."

"…and here you are, going against my orders. Again."

"How about that."

Jack raised an eyebrow at him. "You look awfully pleased with yourself," he commented, biting his lips pensively. Ianto sighed and put a finger between the pages, finally turning sideways at his lover.

"Don't I always?"

"Mmm. Especially when you're doing something you're not supposed to be doing. It's downright wicked." He could see in Jack's eyes that he wanted to play rather than sleep, but for once Ianto was much too interested in something else to indulge him.

"I'll give you wicked," he quipped instead – he wouldn't like saying the last part out loud. For someone so confident, Jack had a rather fragile ego.

He'd intended it as a distraction from the topic of Jack's rules and Ianto's continued disobeying, but the man perked up immediately. "Will you?"

Ianto gave him a quick kiss on the forehead. "Maybe tomorrow, Captain."

And then he promptly opened his book again.

Ianto's few partners that hadn't been one night stands had rarely understood his fervent love for books. Back in London several weeks before he'd started working in Torchwood One, there had been Robert – his flat mate that had evolved into a boyfriend of sorts – who had incredulously asked him if he didn't have enough reading material for University, given that he took History. Lisa had wondered why he'd needed the amount of fantasy and sci-fi he took in on daily basis with all the things he saw at work every day. Jack mostly worried that Ianto wasn't getting enough sleep or that he himself wasn't getting enough attention from Ianto.

It was undeniably nice, he had to admit, that he got to spend his nights like this. Nearly a year had passed since he'd joined Three – and, therefore, since Lisa's discovery – and he would have never imagined back then that he'd be able to find peace again. He would never have pictured himself like that – happy and calm and generally so much better. Especially not with Jack Harkness dozing off in his bed.

The man in question raised himself a bit off the bed so he could place a soft kiss on Ianto's lips. "C'mon," Jack urged. "Sleep. The book's still gonna be here tomorrow."

"But my free time won't be," Ianto countered, annoyed that he'd been interrupted again but too tired to actually put up much of a fight.

"It's not like you're currently having free time," Jack reminded. "You're supposed to be asleep. We both are, and you've still got the lights on and you're keeping me awake."

"Just let me finish–"

"No way I'm falling for that one again," Jack said gently and leant in for another kiss, crowding Ianto back against his pillow. He let his guard down for a moment, allowing Jack the careful exploration of his mouth he was apparently so keen to do even as he felt the Captain push him down onto the bed and position himself over him. He was fully aware of the fingers sliding down his arm until they reached the book gripped in Ianto's hand. Jack pulled off from the kiss with a smile and Ianto leant in for it again, even more eager than before, just as he felt Jack snatch the book away from his hand.

"Hey!" Ianto complained, pulling back from the kiss, trying to sound reprimanding instead of petulant. It was evident by Jack's enchanted grin that it wasn't working. "I had just a few pages left from that chapter."

"Tough," Jack said victoriously. "You're going to sleep." He reached for the remote to turn off the television and bookmarked Ianto's book with a parking ticket that had ended up on his bedroom floor for reasons unknown. "It's not like you're going to get a good night's sleep anyway, given that half the night is wasted, but at least it'll be _something_."

"Okay," Ianto sighed and reached to turn off the bedside lamp and plunge the bedroom into darkness, the only thing properly visible being the strangely red sky outside – just like it was every time when it was snowing. "Night, Jack."

He could almost feel Jack's smile in the darkness as he pulled the blanket over both of them and curled himself closer to Ianto's body to preserve the warmth. "Sweet dreams, Ianto."


End file.
